If It Bleeds: Mr. Harrigan's Phone, The Life of Chuck, If It Bleeds, RatPaperback

I will preface this review by confessing that I am a massive Stephen King fan. I read everything the man puts out, for better or worse. I will also add that his novellas and short stories are among my personal favorites. So, having said all that, IF IT BLEEDS is another 5-star contribution from a master storyteller. Each story is unique, and yet there is still an underlying theme that threads them together. I will add some of my quick thoughts about each piece.

The primary entry is MR. HARRIGAN'S PHONE. It is a bittersweet, coming-of-age ghost story told from a first-person perspective. I will also confess that I am partial to first-person storytelling, and some of my all-time favorite King stories are in this fashion (11/22/63, Bag of Bones, Revival). The story feels like vintage Stephen King, (a term I am reluctant to use, because late in his career, Stephen King has written some of his most compelling fiction) in that it could easily fit in with DIFFERENT SEASONS or FOUR PAST MIDNIGHT. From start to finish, this piece was captivating. It was tightly wound, and it ends on a button.

THE LIFE OF CHUCK seems to be everyone's favorite (based on what I've seen from book Twitter and King fans across all social media platforms) and I can definitely see why. When Stephen King gets more literary with his writing, he also usually produces an exquisite story. The story is told backwards, and in three-acts. It gave me 11/22/63 vibes, and it moved my heart and spirit. I guess, after some reflection, it is "my favorite" from this collection as well, though it feels wrong to say that. This one was the most creative, and I think I love it mostly from a writer's perspective. King's ability to remain innovative after 45 years is inspiring.

IF IT BLEEDS is the eponymous story, and continues King's recent interest in blending crime with the supernatural. It is a direct sequel to a previous work, THE OUTSIDER, which was a stunning novel in its own right, and adapted beautifully as an HBO limited series. Holly Gibney has divided King fans since her introduction in MR. MERCEDES, and I have long been in the camp that loves her. Perhaps it is because I notice certain qualities she has that some of my closest friends have (maybe myself, as well), but mostly I think it's because she is resilient and tough, and yet filled with an unmistakable empathy. IF IT BLEEDS is the longest story in this collection, and it was the fastest one I read. Page-turning suspense and high-stakes with characters I've come to enjoy reading more about.

RAT is a twist on the classic Faustian tale, one that King has explored in a number of stories throughout his career. In his previous novella collection, FULL DARK, NO STARS there is a story titled "Fair Extension," which follows a character who shows no remorse about the catastrophic bargain he strikes up. Here in "Rat," the main character is uncertain if the bargain was a fully-realized thing, if he really meant it, or if he is losing his mind. This story is clearly King having fun, and it is certainly a fun, slightly unsettling read.

Of course, I love every opportunity we get to hear about Stephen King's writing process and his thoughts. Usually we are blessed with a forward or an author's note in his collections, and IF IT BLEEDS is no different. What a blast these four stories were, and I cannot wait to revisit them soon.

This book was great a collection of 4 stories of what I guess you call novellas. The suspense was great as I read I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop and did it ever drop in each story. My favor one was "If It Bleeds." Then it was " Mr. Harrigan's Phone" for the oh this is not going to go well. For quirky there was "The Life of Chuck." The one titled " Rat" was just a bit creepy.

"I intended to start this review with the words: 'Stephen King: writer, author, literary figure, artist - a man who doesn't need a special introduction.' And then I realized how inappropriate that beginning is! How can he not need a special introduction? He has done everything in his power to be specially introduced, and I will attempt to do so with this review. It's not just about this book; this book is an occasion to say a few fitting words about the work of Stephen King, which the American high culture embraced with a considerable delay.

First, he was classified as the 'king of horror,' which is completely inaccurate, or rather incomplete. Stephen King is not just a horror writer; he is an observer, a describer, and a writer of life. If we just look around us, we'll see many of King's characters in real life. The evil ones, the Outsiders who attribute their misdeeds to others, the real people who enjoy and feed on others' misfortune, the evil and crazy ones like Charles Jacobs, but also those like Doctor Sleep and Holly Gibney who, in their own way, save their friends and the whole world from evil, and fortunately, there are still more of them in this world.

On Amazon, there is a series of books called 'How to Win the Game of Life,' describing the successes of famous personalities such as Kobe Bryant, https://www.amazon.com/Kobe-Bryant-Mamba-Mentality-Greatness/dp/B0BNV3GKJK/ref=sr_1_1?qid=1700204991&refinements=p_27%3AAlex+Karadzin&s=books&sr=1-1, Zlatan Ibrahimović, https://www.amazon.com/Zlatan-Ibrahimovi%C4%87-Outsider-Lessons-Success/dp/B09ZCSWL1V/ref=sr_1_3?qid=1700205064&refinements=p_27%3AAlex+Karadzin&s=books&sr=1-3 Joe Rogan, https://www.amazon.com/Joe-Rogan-Success-Mindset-Lessons/dp/B09M4NZNLV and Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CFS1VB69/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_d_asin_title_o02?ie=UTF8&psc=1 The trilogy of Joe Rogan, Kobe Bryant, and Dwayne Johnson. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CMJYYSDF/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_d_asin_title_o01?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Stephen King undoubtedly deserves to be included in this edition, and as number 1, because he and his work have something to say about failure, struggle, falling, and rising, but much more about success, and in the end, only success counts!" In brief: Stephen King has consistently delivered exceptional literary works. It seems impossible for him to produce anything less than outstanding. "If It Bleeds" can be seen as a successor to "The Outsider," featuring the timeless conflict between good and evil. Holly (omen est nomen), along with her friends Jerome Robinson and his sister, becomes entangled in this elemental struggle.

This is a great book. I enjoyed all the stories, which are totally different from each other. I had never read any of the Bill Hodges Trilogy, but the title story in If It Bleeds with Holly Gibney has made me what to read all the books that she appears in because I like the character (I love when I find books enjoy and there is a backlist by the author or in which great characters appear). The other stories are very strong and I have to say The Life of Chuck shows what an experienced author Mr. King is as it has an interesting structure and ends strongly. The other stories are also good and reinforces how the novella is one of the best forms for the author to work in.

If It Bleeds, it leads...

It has been quite some time since I've read King. Every time I do so I realize that I was long overdue. He is a master of the craft with so many years under his belt that when he grabs you he really grabs you. This was my first foray into one his collections of short fiction, and it earned the 'full five'. Three of the four stories within were five-star caliber, and one was a four-star. I'll say a bit about each of them below.

MR. HARRIGAN'S PHONE: 4 stars This was the first story of the bunch. And while it was a solid opener, it was also the least remarkable. When you have as many years under your belt as Stephen King your characterization tends to be pretty top-notch; such is the case here. King sucked me in with the characters, and this one was also a neat look at the beginning of the Information Era. When cell phones were still a novelty.

THE LIFE OF CHUCK: 5 stars Telling a story backward has the tendency to be a slippery slope, I think. One can imagine they're writing the next 'Memento' and ultimately end up with a dud that would have served the reader better in linear fashion. That being said, I think King did it well here. This story ended up being a very interesting exploration into the multitudes each and every one of us contain; the worlds within us.

IF IT BLEEDS: 5 stars This story was about twice as long as the others, and was the standout of the book. Folks familiar with the Bill Hodges trilogy or with The Outsider will recognize the main character, Holly Gibney. If It Bleeds is a direct continuation of her story after the events in The Outsider. Now, I myself am not familiar with those works, and thus found myself in an interesting relationship with this story. I've not read either the trilogy or The Outsider, nor have I watched HBO's recent adaptation of the latter. As such, I figured that I would still be able to enjoy the story but that it would dissuade me from wanting to go back and read those other books that Holly had appeared in. On the contrary I feel that I am now more interested in reading the other works in which Holly appears than I otherwise would have been. Journey before destination after all. It's just that this time I read the destination before the journey. This was an excellent story.

RAT: 5 stars This story was neck and neck with If It Bleeds for my favorite of the bunch, losing out only by a small margin. That being said though, I found this one to be the most 'classic King' disturbing. In fact I read the brunt of this one late last night, and there were a few times I thought I'd better put the thing down. I even had to turn the light back on. You see (and I'll try to explain without giving too much away) there is a portion of the story where the main character undergoes a descent into physical sickness, and couples this with stubbornness and a few bad decisions. There was something deeply visceral about this section of the story that made me uneasy in much the same way that watching a character's descent into madness would. I found myself totally immersed, and rather than stop for the night I felt I had to push on. It's a funny feeling, really. I found myself at once disturbed and fascinated. A part of me wanted things to get better for this character, for things to be alright. But another part of me--perhaps a larger part of me--wanted the descent to continue, to spiral down into the darkness and take me with it. King is just good like that.

So there it is. My first Stephen King book in a long time and what does it make me want to do? Read more, of course.

'Reality was deep, and it was far. It held many secrets and went on forever.'